Of all the rooms in the house, your bedroom is probably the only one where you spend your time when it’s completely dark, completely bright and completely in between.
Therefore, it’s important to get bedroom lighting right so that it’s a comfortable place where you can rest at night, get up and shine every morning and get on with the day’s business.
We’ve put together this bedroom lighting guide to teach you how to light your bedroom properly. Part one covers some basic bedroom lighting tips and shows you how to organise your lights using mood, accent and task lighting.
To find out the main criteria when looking for a chandelier check out our article on : how to choose your chandelier .
We’ll also help you choose the b right bulbs for your room, so that their brightness and colour match your room perfectly.
The second part of our guide to lighting a bedroom is a Q&A with our guest, who we’ll call Paul, known for his ability to combine vintage and contemporary decor, who shares his secrets to a well-lit, functional and relaxing modern bedroom.
Knowing how to organise your lighting is key to creating the best lighting for your bedroom. This means finding the right balance between ambient lighting, task lighting and accent lighting. By creating this balance, you’ll be able to create the right lighting for every mood and activity with just one switch.
Ambient Lighting
From general to detailed, you’ll want to organise your lighting layers according to what you plan to do regularly in your room. To get started, start by building a lighting base using ambient or general lighting.
Adequate ambient lighting includes daylight through large windows or skylights or artificial lighting; anything that provides a decent amount of light for general tasks such as cleaning, folding clothes and getting your bed ready.
When it comes to artificial lighting, ambient light is best achieved with ceiling lights (such as recessed ceiling lights , chandeliers, pendant lights, etc.). These two types of lighting provide enough light for activities that don’t require it. it’s not bright, focused light.
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Task lighting
If you plan to do activities that require a little more concentration, such as reading, working or applying make-up, consider applying layered task lights to your general lighting.
Focused lighting doesn’t have to be limited to traditional desk lighting. Think bedside lamps, low pendant lights either side of the bed, wall lights, wall lights either side of the headboard or other directional lights above.
In this sense, a bedside lamp can essentially take any form as long as it provides sufficient illumination for long-term concentration. In addition to design and placement, the functionality of the task lamp is also contained in its bulb (more on that later).
Accent lighting
Accent lighting is designed to draw attention to and highlight features – such as artwork – in a given space. In a bedroom, accent lighting itself can act as a dimmed version of ambient lighting, giving off a pleasant glow and creating a warm atmosphere.
Using integrated bedroom lighting, wall sconces, ribbon lights or other fixtures can be a way of incorporating this functionality into your bedroom lighting design.
Dimmers
dimmers play an important role in bedroom lighting design. Not only do dimmers allow you to add an extra dimension to the room environment, they are inherently multifunctional.
From low brightness to maximum brightness, a dimmer can meet many lighting needs. At maximum brightness, the dimmer is suitable for general lighting, while at lower settings it helps to create ambience.
As dimmers are easy to install (and as long as the bulb type allows it), any luminaire can fulfil a multifunctional role.
Choosing the right bulb
Brightness
When fitting out your bedroom lighting, you also need to consider the type of bulb you’ll be using for each light fitting. Depending on the intensity of the light and the colour emitted, the bulb can have a positive or negative effect on your functioning during and after activity.
But before you look for an old bulb, you need to determine your preferred brightness or lumen level. Although suggested lumen values for a bedroom range from 2000 to 4000, this is a subjective decision that varies depending on the mood you want in the room.
Once you have determined the maximum light output of the bulb, you need to determine whether the type of bulb you want is adjustable. Compact fluorescent lamps (or CFLs) are difficult to control with a standard dimmer, as are some low-voltage LEDs . In such cases, you’ll need special dimmers for smooth adjustment without flicker or hum. 
Colour
The colour of the light plays an important role in supporting certain activities. To start with, consider the type of bulb: incandescent / halogen bulbs generally emit a soft white glow, compact fluorescent lamps tend to give off a lot of blue (although they have evolved to cover a wider spectrum of colours), while LEDs can cover the full range of colour temperatures.
As white and blue light colours have been shown to promote alertness, lighting with these shades is best used in conjunction with task or directional lighting to support targeted actions.
Because blue and white lights increase alertness and then suppress the production of melatonin (or sleep-inducing hormones), they are not ideal if you are trying to relax in your bedroom after a long day.
On the other hand, lighting that diffuses warmer colours (such as yellow) does not interfere with melatonin production. So warmer lights are ideal for bedroom activities such as reading, watching TV or simply relaxing.
As bedroom functions evolve, the right lighting is needed to support those functions. Between the right lighting layers, dimmers and bulbs, focusing these aspects is a surefire way to provide comfortable lighting in a room. So get creative and choose the fixtures you need to achieve the room lighting scheme you want here.
Expert bedroom lighting tips with interior designer, Paul
Now that we’ve covered the basics of light layering, it’s time to dive into your bedroom lighting design using Paul’s expert advice.
How do you come up with a modern lighting plan for your bedroom?
Paul: I’m an architect, so we start with the furniture design and measure everything down to where the sockets are. If there’s artwork on the walls, mount spotlights on the ceiling, two feet from the wall if it’s a standard eight-foot ceiling, or further up if the ceiling is higher.
You want the light to fall to eye level where the work is hanging. If we’re using a hung or semi-recessed ceiling light, it’s usually in the centre of the room, often above the bed. Therefore, we try not to hang it too low, usually 15-20 cm from the ceiling.
I like to use quite large frames – my philosophy is that more and more elements of modern design have a bigger impact. I don’t use a lot of small or standard sizes. To me, they look like they’re lying flat or look like tchotchkes. I prefer things that have the look, size and scale.
Is symmetry important for bedroom lighting?
Paul: No. But there is balance and layering of light. I like different types of fixtures. For example, I might put a floor lamp next to the armchair, table lamps on both sides of the bed and a decorative light on the chest of drawers. I always try to have something with shade to add a warm glow throughout.
There are also indirect lighting sources , such as sconces reflecting light off the wall, cornices rubbing against the ceiling or an architectural feature, or lamps or spotlights for artwork. ‘art.
The aim is to move your eyes around the room, not just focus on the bed. By introducing light into different corners, you make the space feel bigger and more balanced. The aim isn’t to illuminate the room evenly, but to light the room in interesting ways so that the eye wanders from one fixture to the next.
To create a pleasant overall ambience, I would use a combination of the following types of lighting: I would place a floor lamp next to the armchair in the corner and the hanging light would be suspended about 18 to 24 inches from the ceiling, like a display case. I’d top it off with a pair of bedside lamps.
Nowadays, many bedrooms are not just places to sleep, but also places to work, read and spend time with family.
How can lighting help accommodate all these activities in one room?
Paul: The key is flexibility and the ability to control light levels, so if someone wants to sleep and someone wants to work, you can do that. Use different lighting in each room instead of one big ceiling light. In the office, use task lights as well as ceiling lights to light the whole space; that way you have options.
What to look out for when choosing bedside lighting?
Paul: If your reading light is a table lamp, choose a light shade. A black or dark grey shade might look cool, but if it doesn’t shine with light, you won’t be able to read next to it.
If you’re a serious reader, choose a task lamp with a swivel arm that’s vertically and horizontally adjustable for maximum flexibility. But if you don’t read much or only read on the iPad, bright light is less important, you can opt for something more sculptural, like a blown glass light.
The soft glow at night would be soothing and incredibly warm.
What are some good alternatives to table lamps for bedside lighting?
Paul: We sometimes hang pendants on bedside tables. It’s a good option, especially in small rooms, because they don’t take up space on the table. But it’s more about mood lighting than reading.
Are there things people should avoid when lighting a bedroom?
Paul: Installing only hanging cans – or too many – is a common mistake. Everything flattens, has no dimension and is unflattering – it looks older and slimmer.
What about sconces in the bedroom?
Paul: For reading, I like sconces with swivel arms. Sometimes I use a sconce to flank a door or an architectural feature like a wall between two windows. They can be used along the corridor leading from the bedroom to the bathroom. A more sculptural sconce can be used on its own as a decorative element in a room.
How do you incorporate modern lighting into a more traditional bedroom?
Paul: It’s all about mixing it up. You’ve got two options: either you choose a strong statement piece – a contemporary frame in the middle of a room that has scale and presence and is clearly an anomaly, something that breaks the rule.
Or you introduce modern lights to create a rhythm and teach the eye that introducing this new design language is a deliberate move, not a mistake or a solitary remainder. The most effective materials are natural, textured and irregular, such as wood, alabaster, natural stone, weathered metals and linen. Chrome and white glass can look cold in this type of decor.